Question

A forest is a purifier of air and water. Explain.

Answer 1

Hint: The forests serve as water purifying systems and green lungs in nature. There are variations due to different climatic conditions in the types of trees and other plants from forest to forest; the types of animals also differ in the same way.

Complete answer:
All animals depend ultimately on plants for food whether herbivores or carnivores. Organisms which feed on plants get eaten by other organisms often, and this cycle goes on. This forms a food chain. In the forest, many food chains can be found. All food chains are interlinked. All food chains get affected if any one food chain is disturbed. All components of a forest are interdependent. If any one of those components says trees are removed, all other components would be affected.
The dark coloured substance which is the organic part of the soil is called humus. Decomposers are the micro-organisms which convert the dead animals and plants to humus. These microorganisms play a significant role in the forest. The presence of humus makes sure that the nutrients of the dead animals and plants are released into the soil. These nutrients are further again absorbed by the roots of the living plants from there. The nutrients are cycled in this way. So, in a forest, nothing goes waste. Through the process of photosynthesis, plants release oxygen. The oxygen provided by these plants helps for animal respiration. Further, they also maintain the balance of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. This is the reason why forests are called lungs.
Forest also allows rainwater to seep in and thus acts as a natural absorber of rainwater. This helps in maintaining the water table. Forests not only help in maintaining the flow of water in the streams so that we get a steady supply of water but also help in controlling floods; rain hits the ground directly and may flood the area if trees are not present around it. The soil can also be damaged due to heavy rain. In the absence of trees, the soil is washed away or eroded; this is because roots of trees normally bind the soil together.
Thus, a forest is a purifier of air and water.

Note: There are many types of forests in our country like the tropical evergreen forests, tropical deciduous forests, mangrove forests, etc.